'Your Company Does Not Have The Right To Gouge': Hoboken Landlords Get Stern Letters

HOBOKEN, NJ — Your rent increase in Hoboken may not just be frustrating — it may be against New Jersey law.

Tenants in Hoboken have recently reported rent hikes of 25 percent or higher amid a rash of national companies buying properties from local owners who used to follow the law.

The state law that governs rent increases applies to both old and new buildings, and to month-to-month as well as annual leases.

Now, Hoboken's mayor has written letters to three major landlords in Hoboken who have told tenants in the last year that their rents will increase (according to tenants) 20 percent or more.

In two recent cases, the mayor asked the property owners to respond to his letters by this Wednesday, April 19.

After the tenants began making the increases public in Patch last summer and then again in local media last month, they said they might have to leave town and pull their kids from the local schools because of the increases.

And tenants in smaller properties told the media recently that their new landlords said they'd have to leave because they intend to tear the property down.

But state law — besides addressing rent increases — also says that landlords can't evict tenants just because of a change in ownership.

Now, the city has come out publicly telling some corporate landlords that their rent increases are too damn high.

In one letter this week, the mayor told a national real estate investment trust (REIT): "While I understand your fundamental right to make a profit, your company does not have the right to improperly gouge."

The City Council also has a resolution on the agenda for Wednesday night calling on three landlords to rescind their "unconscionable" increases.

What Do The Laws Actually Say?

New Jersey law protects tenants from "unreasonable and unconscionable" rent hikes. It also calls for formal eviction processes.

State laws about eviction say that landlords must follow a legal process when deciding to remove a tenant or failing to renew that person's lease. They can't simply tell the tenant they're the new owner and the person must leave, even if the building is going to be torn down, or if the tenant is month-to-month. READ MORE: 'Delivered Vacant' Back In Hoboken?

What about rent increases? State law applies, and local law may apply as well. State law, while not setting a limit, says that increases can't be "unreasonable and unconscionable" — generally 25 percent or higher, say tenant advocates who follow court precedents.

From the state of New Jersey:

Also, Hoboken law currently limits increases to 5 percent in rent controlled buildings, but does allow landlords to pass along certain surcharges. Local law also allows for a 25 percent decontrol every few years if a tenant leaves, which provides an incentive for eviction that worries tenant advocates.

The best way to find out if the laws apply to you is to talk to a city official or the city's free tenant attorney.

(Asking your landlord if you building's under rent control won't always get you the right information, as tenants of certain properties in Jersey City and Hoboken found out last year.)

Hoboken tenants have also told Patch about these issues that were recently addressed in other towns:

• Who Owns The Building? A number of property owners have started a new LLC each time they buy a building, making it difficult for tenants and officials to even address a rent increase. Read more about that in this story.
• Tearing Rent Controlled Buildings Down: New owners have applied to the city to tear rent-controlled buildings down, but don't have to tell the city what will happen to the tenants inside.

Two New Letters From Hoboken's Mayor

Below are two letters the mayor of Hoboken sent in the last five days to Avalon Bay and Lincoln Properties, after tenants alleged they were being asked to pay unexpectedly high rents.

One of the tenants told Patch that even with some of his neighbors starting at favorable rates because they moved in during the pandemic, increases have totaled 50 percent over the past two years.

"Many of us asked when we moved in, how increases would work in a post covid environment," said the tenant. "I was personally told whatever your current rate is, they simply apply an across the board CPI based increase percentage."

He added, "If I would have known the plan all along would have been to bait me in with a reasonable rent and then jack me up to the moon once times were better, I would have found other accommodations."

Another tenant told Patch that he had lived in his building for 21 years.

READ MORE: Longtime Hoboken Tenants Fear Displacement

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